Old dresser

My Grandmother passed away a couple years ago and left behind alot of items. My Mom recently brought this home and has several questions about it. She said it was bought at an estate sale before she was born and she's 63 now. She wants to put it back together as close to original if possible and set it up it in her home. It's pretty rough looking, but any info on it as far as age and any hardware it possibly had on it would be greatly appreciated. Here are several pictures of it. I can post more if needed. Thanks!


This is the front of the dresser. The original handles are missing, but parts of the original ones are on the right side of the middle and lower drawers. Each drawer has little diamond shaped locks.



Side shot




The back of it. It's missing one of the brace mounts for the mirror.




The mirror. If you can see, it swivels in the middle. The mirror image has some waviness to it, as if it was made by hand. You can notice the reflection of the ceiling fan is a little distorted. It's real noticeable when you look at it at an angle.



Angle view of the mirror. That's my Mom and my youngest son in the reflection



Back of the mirror



Close-up of the top of the mirror




Close up of bottom of mirror



One of the hinges the mirror rides on




Part of one of the original handles




One of the handles that was on one of the drawers, but my Mom says it's not original

 

Looks like Cottage/Eastlake style,circa 1870s-80s.Mass production,so theres a lot out there.

 

Agree with Johnny on the date. It is a transitional piece between Renaissance Revival and Eastlake. The hardware is not original. It probably would have looked something like this....

or this.....

Since it has been drilled for a larger pull, something like this might be appropriate as a replacement.....

 

Here are some to look at:

http://www.historichouseparts.com/pdshop/shop/category.aspx?catid=32
http://www.antique-hardware.com/Drawer_Pulls/Eastlake_Cottage
https://www.houseofantiquehardware.com/drop-pulls
https://www.ebay.com/b/Wooden-Antique-Drawer-Pulls/162933/bn_18085123?_trksid=p2047675.m4096.l9147
http://robinsonsantiques.com/drawer-pulls/drawer-pulls.htm

S'all I got!!!!!!!!! Happy Hunting!!!!

 

Definitely Eastlake style. I'd opt for the third set since someone drilled holes in the poor thing. The first one Brad posted may be a bit early in design, but with Victorians who knows.

 

Yeah, you're probably going to want to cover up extra drilled holes if they're going to show.....and you can get pretty well toned down finishes on any of the replacement pulls.....or maybe luck out and get antique ones!!!! Personally I really like the old drop pull ones, but they just may not cover the extra holes you might need to or, might not be to your liking!!! Enjoy your restoration!!!! Hope you'll show us when you're done!!!!

 

Wow, I can't begin to thank you guys for all the info! I had to call my Mom and tell her everything you guys shared since she doesn't have a computer (she despises them). She had no idea it was that old. She's coming over next week to pick out some hardware from the links posted.

She did have another question...it's about the key locks. She says they're functional, but I thought they were just decorative. She says there's a hole behind the keyhole and it had some kind of locking setup, but all that is missing. I'm not sure about any of it since I thought they were decorative.


It looks like there's no hole any deeper than the drawer face, but she swears there's a hole for a key. Any info on that would be great. Also, the top drawer needs a new one since it's partially broke. Would those be easy to find?

 

These generally had working locks. Keys are not complex and pretty easy to find. Take out one of the locks and take it to a locksmith. Otherwise, sometimes antique shops have old keys available to try and purchase. Replacement locks are also available.

 

Ok, thanks again!

 

Does anyone know what kind of wood it is made from?

 

Looks like pine with that knot in the drawer.

 

Ok, thanks. Just trying to ask what I think my Mom would want to know before she stops by in a couple days

 

I think my Mom is leaning more towards this handle for the replacements.

 

Works for me. It looks like it would belong there.

 

Not quite right but better than what was on it.

 

They're a good option with those extra holes. I found a beauty of a secretary at an estate sale last weekend - I'd guess circa 1800/1820, but with 20th century brasses. They were batwings, but not even close to original. Probably left on to fill one set of holes; someone had drilled three where one should have been.

 

Yeah, she wishes it didn't have the extra holes in it too.